CCA Communicator logoCommunity Choice Aggregators (CCAs) face a unique challenge: while they offer significant benefits to their communities, many customers still don’t understand what CCAs are or how they work. The solution lies not solely in technical explanations of energy procurement and rate-setting, but in demystifying their value through clear, benefit-driven communication and authentic community engagement.

Many CCAs have introduced creative program names that, while catchy, can leave customers scratching their heads. Instead of leading with ambiguous titles, CCAs such as MCE Clean Energy focus on benefits first. On its Programs and Offers page, MCE emphasizes what each program delivers — with clear, actionable calls like “Get Cash for Heat Pump Water Heater Upgrades” or “Get a Free Energy Assessment for Your Small Business.” This benefit-first approach ensures residents and local businesses immediately understand what’s in it for them, without needing to decode technical jargon or branded program names.

CCAs can demystify themselves most effectively by showing up where their communities already gather. This means participating in recreational resident events, appearing at sports events and attending other local agency-hosted events and initiatives. When CCA staff members appear in-person to community events, residents begin to see them as neighbors and community partners rather than distant utility representatives. Lancaster Energy’s work toward becoming a hydrogen-powered city becomes more meaningful when residents can connect that vision to the familiar faces they’ve met at community gatherings. Clean Energy Alliance’s (CEA) multilingual LEARN program becomes more accessible when it’s promoted through trusted community partnerships with local libraries, community centers and cultural organizations.

Where traditional utilities rely on imagery of power lines, solar panels and electric vehicles, CCAs can stand apart by emphasizing the authenticity and impact of their work through human-focused imagery in their marketing and social media presence. Effective CCA marketing shows real people benefiting from programs, and real people working to make those programs a reality for their customers. Social media becomes particularly powerful when used to celebrate staff success and community partnerships rather than focusing solely on corporate metrics or renewable energy percentages.

Ultimately, the most effective demystification happens when residents begin to see their CCA as something they help shape rather than something that simply happens to them. CEA recently surveyed its seven member cities to identify community priorities, and that feedback helped inform its priorities for the next two years. Hosting community forums, seeking feedback, monitoring public opinion and reporting on community-informed decisions can demonstrate that community choice truly means community control. Residents should be invited to become active stakeholders in their energy future rather than passive recipients of utility services.

CCAs succeed when they consistently demonstrate that they exist to serve their communities, not the other way around. Through benefit-first messaging, genuine engagement, people-centered marketing, and open listening, CCAs can evolve from mysterious entities into trusted community partners. When customers recognize familiar faces at community events, understand the value of available programs and feel heard, CCAs become more than a line item on a customer’s bill; they become essential partners in building stronger, more empowered communities.

For more #AlwaysBeLearning insights from Tripepi Smith: